Legalized statewide sports wagering in North Carolina from smartphones and desktops that began two weeks ago is off to a “strong start,” a state lottery official said on Wednesday, likely buoyed by betting on college basketball at its season’s apex. Preliminary monetary numbers for the first day and first week of sports wagering were presented at a meeting of the …
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Thailand's lower house approves bill to legalize same-sex marriage
Lawmakers in Thailand’s lower house of Parliament overwhelmingly approved a marriage equality bill on Wednesday that would make the country the first in Southeast Asia to legalize equal rights for marriage partners of any gender. The bill passed its final reading with the approval of 400 of the 415 members of the House of Representatives who were in attendance, with …
Read More »Man sues GOP Rep. Burchett over Super Bowl rally shooting, illegal immigrant claims
A man who was briefly handcuffed in the chaos that followed a deadly shooting at the Kansas City Chiefs’ Super Bowl rally is suing a Tennessee congressman who falsely accused him in social media posts of being one of the shooters and an immigrant in the country illegally. Denton Loudermill Jr., of Olathe, Kansas, filed the federal lawsuit this week …
Read More »5 killed after bus veers off highway, crashes in eastern Germany
At least five people were killed Wednesday when a bus headed from Berlin to Switzerland came off a highway in eastern Germany and ended up on its side, authorities said. The accident happened on the A9 highway near Leipzig at about 9:45 a.m. and the road was closed in both directions. It wasn’t immediately clear why the bus, which was …
Read More »Suspect shoots robotic police dog in Massachusetts standoff; manufacturer says it's a first
A robotic dog is being thanked by state police in Massachusetts for helping avert a tragedy involving a person barricaded in a home. The dog named Roscoe was part of the Massachusetts State Police Bomb Squad and deployed on March 6 in a Barnstable house after police were fired upon. Police sent in two other robots often used for bomb …
Read More »4 sentenced to death for 2013 assassination of Tunisian politician
A Tunisian court sentenced four people to death and two to life in prison on charges stemming from the murder of a left-wing politician, a public prosecutor said Wednesday. Chokri Belaid, the 48-year-old leader of the Popular Front coalition, was shot in his car outside his home in Tunis in February 2013. His assassination, the country’s first in decades, prompted …
Read More »China's Xi Jinping tells Dutch PM that restricting technology access won't stop China's advance
Chinese leader Xi Jinping told visiting Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte on Wednesday that attempts to restrict China’s access to technology will not stop the country’s advance. The Netherlands imposed export licensing requirements in 2023 on the sale of machinery that can make advanced processor chips. The move came after the United States blocked Chinese access to advanced chips and …
Read More »Banksy's London tree mural covered in plastic, fenced off after apparent vandalism
It was nice while it lasted. An environmentally themed mural by elusive street artist Banksy that appeared last week on a London street has been encased in plastic and surrounded by fencing after an apparent act of vandalism. The work is on a four-story wall near a public housing project. Beside a real and severely pruned cherry tree, the artist …
Read More »Former California Controller Betty Yee joins crowded 2026 race to replace Newsom
California’s former Controller Betty Yee announced Wednesday she will run for governor in 2026, vying to succeed outgoing Gov. Gavin Newsom against other major Democratic contenders in what will be the first open race for the state’s top office since 2018. If elected, Yee would be the first woman to become California’s governor. She is a San Francisco native born …
Read More »Pakistan to perform DNA test on remains of suicide bomber who killed 5 Chinese nationals
Pakistani authorities will perform DNA testing on the remains of the suicide bomber who rammed his explosive-laden car into a vehicle in the country’s northwest, killing five Chinese nationals and their local driver, officials said Wednesday. The attack occurred in Shangla, a district in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province where thousands of Chinese nationals work on the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor which …
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